Electric lighting has not entirely replaced the desire to use flames and candles for providing light. Candles are appealing as decorations and for their gentle, low light. However, candles may be hazardous, capable of causing fires from the burning flame, and damage from hot wax. Other shortcomings of candles include how easily their flames are extinguished in the presence of wind and moisture, and how short of a period they last before their wax is consumed.
Electric candles have been introduced to provide safe, electric-powered light while retaining the decorative and appealing qualities of candles. Small votive designs with a static bulb housed in hard plastic materials have been widely used. Recently, pillar designs with a housing made of wax have also been popular because the wax allows such electric pillar candles to appear more realistic.
Different techniques have been employed for creating a more realistic output of light in flameless candles. In one approach, LEDs, which provide the light source, are driven with a variable current to simulate the flickering effect of a burning flame. In another approach, light from LEDs is projected against a reflective and translucent flame-shaped object which extends from a wax housing to simulate the light of a burning flame. To simulate flickering, in one example, a fan operating inside the candle housing blows air onto the flame-shaped object, causing it to move. In another example, a magnetic field produced around the flame-shaped object causes it to move.